Progress, however slow... but isn't it about the JOURNEY?

[50 Chevy LS3]

Steve,
Thanks for remembering the old girl! I actually spent Friday working on her.

My paint is 2-stage, with tinted-primer. So maybe that IS three stage. My brother told me the primer will even have metallic in it. And it is an OEM color. Do yourself a favor- if you want to try out some different colors, have the paint store mix you some spray bombs in the color(s) you'd like. Significantly less expensive than buying a pint.

What brand does your brother like. Most painters are fiercely loyal to whatever brand they've used. I priced the dark reds, I like, from a body shop guy, I know. He mixes his own and uses Axalta. I thought, OK, that's the new, Dupont, and I've always been a Dupont guy. That is until he told me, $700- $900, a gallon. So, I don't know, Carquest, sells Sherwin-Williams. NAPA, sells Martin Senour, and I have also used that, in the past. They are both under $200/Gal.
(I think, Sherwin Williams, owns, Martin Senour.)
Steve.

 

[52wasp]

Steve, my brother and I just had this conversation last Friday, after a successful day with Penny. The prices you are seeing (the $700-$900 a gallon ones) are not unlike what we discussed. I am looking at something like ~$2,000 in "chemicals": paint, reducers, activators and the like. He isn't "fiercely loyal" because in his line of work he is lucky to paint ONE car a year. But, I will (hopefully) be back at the shop on Friday, and we'll discuss this topic more.

 

[52wasp]

A bit more progress:
I had a chance to weld up the underseat-drawers, and throw some primer at them.

If I spent half as much time working on Penny as I have moving boxes and furniture... she'd need new tires by now!
Zig, I am doing the best I can.

And FYI, Deve's site appears to be working again.

 

[52wasp]

Baby steps here...
I sprayed bed-liner material in the boxes Friday:

Yes, they were dusty after only a few days!

I managed to spend a few hours yesterday:

As you so astutely pointed out in post #230 Zig, the frame "looked" cut up by virtue of the upturn. Done (ok, the passenger side is done). That modification presented another problem. The frame now hits the riser:

Requiring the offending material below the line to be removed.

Crisis averted!

 

[52wasp]

Next was dialing in the underseat-drawer system. The driver's side is in, but I ended up with different dimensions than Deve.
1. I cut a little higher up off the floor, to leave room for some padding under the rubber mat.
2. Maybe Deve isn't using a stock seat (chime in Deve!)?
3. Maybe my repop floor pan is a little different?
4. With the seat skirts in place, I had to move the drawers closer together.
5. When closed, the top of my drawers are within ~1/4" from the seat frame.

and

As far as the piece of riser becoming the drawer-front, I had a little "mishap" with the Plasma Cutter. Suffice it to say deflected plasma sparks will burn thru a double layer welding glove in an INSTANT. No trip to the ER required, thankfully.

With the seat "skirts" on place, the front of the riser isn't visible, so I think a fabbed-up drawer front (with an integral top-curl as a handle) is going to be what I do. There will be a "catch" to hold the drawer(s) closed until you open them. As you can see, I used 1" x 2" 1/8" thk Aluminum Angle stock for the drawer slide supports (I have this weight-reduction thing stuck in my head), and slides rated at 50lbs/pair. The angle stock is fastened to the floor of the cab, not the front and rear of the riser. I'll likely add a stiffener across the entire top of the riser to make up for the removal of the riser in 2 places and a gusset at the mid-point of the riser.

Once you deviate from STOCK, everything changes!

 

[Zig]

Zig, I am doing the best I can.

Me too. Finally went on a real vacation to FLA so my daughter could see first hand what being on/in the gulf is like. She'd move there in a heartbeat, she says. But really, this was the first vacation I'd been on since '97!

 

[52wasp]

Zig, you should vacation more often! The only way I can actually relax on vacation is if I go AWAY. As in not be at home, where endless chores and projects abound.

Speaking of projects...

 

[52wasp]

Slowly but surely,
The underseat drawer project is getting some much-needed time.

As it turns out, the plasma cutter wasn't the best cutting-tool to use to open the riser-front. With the "mishap", I would have had to repair the piece of riser to use it as a drawer front. I would prefer to have an "overlay" drawer front, with integral curl at the top to use as a pull. I mocked the shape up with a strip of nibbler-waste.

This is the basic shape I am after- It resembles a toolbox drawer w/ integral pull in the shop. 20 gauge material should be more than adequate. Stay tuned.

 

[52wasp]

And this is the result: one of the drawer-fronts, laid out in the flat.

Inside hems folded

And the handle curl folded up

When installed, (and I moved the seat-frame forward 1 click) the drawer fronts aren't visible at all.

 

[52wasp]

One of these days, that 2-drink cupholder that manages to show up in every post will find a home. The shallow recesses in the Astro Van seat middle fold-down portion aren't deep enough to actually hold anything. My '04 GMC had this same item. Ultra-ergonomic location, I miss it in my new truck. Suffice it to say Penny will be so equipped.

 

[Zig]

Watching what you are doing, Mike~ So many frightened faces...
I can't believe your patience to work on drawers when you haven't even driven your truck yet! I do appreciate your doggedness in trying to get the under seat apparatus to work out the way you want it. Great photos, BTW!

 

[52wasp]

Zig, ALL of this stuff needs to be done BEFORE I drive the truck. Because once I start driving it, I'm not going to (for example) rip the interior out of it to make storage drawers under the seat. Soooo much other stuff to do, if I start with "I'll do that after the truck is done", I'll end up driving an unpainted truck with no exhaust, no gauges (I will have a BED though :<) ) etc.

 

[50 Chevy LS3]

Totally random project question...
What are you doing for a steering column?
The drawers look just right to cut a piece of foam for the bottom, and stow your 6-shooter.
Steve.

 

[52wasp]

Steve,
Not random at all... For a steering column, I will be (re)using the stock column, with the stock steering wheel, and an add-on turn signal. I cut the mast and shaft from the original box, and will be utilizing pieces harvested from the Safari van I got the hydroboost from (a telescoping, dual-universal joint equipped intermediate shaft). By moving the engine to the right ~1-1/4 inches, I have a straight shot to the (S10) steering box. I like the big old original wheel.

And no need to stow the "iron" in a drawer... NH is now "constitutional carry".

One of the drawers will have a Rand McNally roadmap in it. When we drive cross-country, we'll do it "old school". I bet we'll still be able to find your house!

Good to hear from you!

 

[52wasp]

You CAN teach an old dog new tricks! (but he might be that good at performing them)

The day to finally mount that cup-holder was today. Took measurements last time I worked on Penny, and the (requisite) drawing helped me to make these brackets from 3/4 x 3/4 square tubing. I coped the ends with the flap-wheel to fit the seat frame better. Go easy on the 12-place dimensions, they are "reference dimensions" and just a tiny bit more precise than I can cut with the death-wheel! That's Dykem on the parts.

There is now a TIG welder at the shop... and I am all about stepping out of my comfort zone. Not the worst welds in the world for my first time.

I got the brackets mounted to the seat frame (mostly- there is more work to do). No awards to be handed out for these welds- I'll need to clean them up when I weld all-around the tubes. Who knew having a place to put your travel-mug was so darned important!

 

[52wasp]

I guess at the end of the day, stepping (well) outside your comfort zone is a good thing. If my TIG's were just plain awful, I could always resort to "just" MIG welding them. Penny has been a great experience to date- with more to come.

 

[52wasp]

Hello all,
The seat frame in primer:

and the all-important cupholder.

Time to start rounding up color codes for the interior bits. Anyone have a good source? Penny's interior will be all stock colors.

 

[Zig]

Looking great, Mike!
A long, long time ago, there was this guy that went by the name of "Ken's 50". He had (IIRC) a lot of good info on stock code colors for the interior, as that is the way he pained his. He also had the dope on engine color as well, if you wanted to paint that V8 of yours "stock"

 

[50 Chevy LS3]

Time to start rounding up color codes for the interior bits. Anyone have a good source? Penny's interior will be all stock colors.

Our host sells the paint in Acrylic Enamel.

(1947-53) Interior Cab Paint-Champagne

• 

Part # : 31-014
Year : 47-53


Steve.

 

[Zig]

Time for an update Mike~ Let's get some photos up in here, okay?!